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The Benefits of Employee Financial Wellness in Education - A Financial Wellness Program Can Help Retain Key Employees and Build a Healthier Bottom Line

By Roma Seegers posted 03-02-2022 02:46 PM

  
By Roma Seegers, Amy Carenza, and Onyx Bengston

In every industry, employers recognize the importance of attracting and retaining talented employees. The importance of a stable workforce is even more pronounced in education, as students depend on their teachers and faculty to create a nurturing learning environment. These attributes can be easily threatened by the burden of mental and emotional stress stemming from financial matters.

Educators experience somewhat of a double-bind. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, 78% of all trained teachers incur student debt in pursuit of the profession while they face a weaker pay scale relative to other industries with a similarly educated cohort. The statistics only worsen for minority educators as 91 % of all Black or African American and 82% of Hispanic or Latino trained teachers incur undergraduate debt. Furthermore many education professionals are often expected to earn advanced degrees, which often results in additional student debt. These factors underscore the need for financial wellness resources.


When an educator's financial wellness is lacking, it's a substantial stressor for the teacher and a significant missed opportunity for the students. Educators serve as essential interventionists in the lives of our youth and influence students profoundly, often mentoring students well beyond the textbook subjects. We need teachers rooted in a strong foundation of personal financial literacy if we hope to properly encourage and influence future generations on their lifelong journey of responsible financial wellness.

Employees Need Resources and Direction
Employers who do not take an active role in addressing their employees' financial wellness will most likely continue to face challenges retaining talent, as well as the inevitable expenses associated with attrition.

Beyond retention, the impact of employee financial stress is substantial, costing American businesses $500 billion a year in productivity alone.[1] Statistics show that nearly half of employees admit to spending more than 3 hours a week thinking about financial stressors while at work and say that finances are a distraction. And, over a quarter of employees admit that their productivity has been impacted by financial stressors, causing one in ten employees to miss work.[2]

Employers are Responding
In the face of these challenges, employers are beginning to implement solutions. Today, 24 percent of employees say their employer offers services to assist with personal finances, and more than two-thirds say they’ve used them.[2] In order to deliver an effective benefits package, employers must consider all levels of their employee base to confirm that their core employees have access to everyday financial solutions, and that emerging and senior talent have access to more robust, sophisticated offerings. By offering customized delivery where and when it’s convenient for employees, along with relevant solutions and education, employers are helping to boost utilization of financial wellness benefits.

How a Financial Wellness Program Can Help
To be successful, a Financial Wellness program must provide access to products and services that meet the needs of every school district. This helps to build strong financial habits and improve employee financial security by providing solutions targeted to each situation and life stage. In turn, this helps to improve productivity and employee retention.

Key Considerations of Successful Financial Wellness Programs
Recognizing that every school district's needs are different and every employee's financial wellness journey is unique, offering a customizable financial wellness program is key. The following offerings demonstrate a commitment to improving financial well-being, helping to minimize turnover and reduce distractions so that employees can stay focused on providing an exceptional educational outcome.

  1. Workplace Banking: A strong bank-at-work program should offer a variety of account options for employees to choose from, as well as onsite and (especially during these social-distancing times) virtual financial services. In addition, it should provide workshops and informational events on direct deposit sign-ups, applying for mortgages, and understanding various credit card programs and how they meet the employees’ needs. The program you select should also provide training on how to utilize digital money management tools. It’s important to note that this program should come with no cost or administrative burden to the employee.

  2. Consumer-Directed Healthcare: Today, more and more employees are being asked to take greater responsibility in paying for their healthcare. An HSA has become a common way of doing that, but it’s vital that employees know how an HSA works, understand the often-overlooked benefits and know how to use the tools they have available to them.

    Your HSA solution should provide an easy-to-use digital experience to help empower employees to make informed decisions and utilize the tools that make it easy for them to pay bills, contribute to their accounts and understand the ways they can help those accounts grow.

  3. Digital Financial Assessment & Resource Center: To help motivate employee participation and improve their financial acumen, a successful financial wellness program should offer a customizable, digital tool that will help drive engagement. This tool should allow employees to assess their financial wellness, review specific topic recommendations, easily access a complete financial education curriculum, and earn points for tracking progress toward their goals. It should also allow the company administrator to gather insights on employee engagement and data trends, and provide reporting to assist with employee priorities and education.

Sources:
  1. "The Employer's Guide to Financial Wellness," Salary Finance, 2019
  2. Employee Financial Stress, PwC, 2019
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